I was wondering if any of you have some good tips to get a perfect 1st to second shift as its always my slopiest. Its not like I'm jerking the car all over the road, its just never as smooth as say and auto (when I'm going for smooth over fast). I only have dificulty when accelerating fairly fast...the shift simply feels too abrupt, I dont know if I'm letting off the clutch too fast or too slow or what? I know its a pointless thread but the forums been kinda stale lately anyway.

 

Actually, a decent topic. Though i have tons of exp with manual tranny all of it is ancient history. I have not been real smooth between 1st & 2nd myself.

Any hot tips?

 

I know what you mean. I think the problem with the 1-2 shift is the revs drop faster than I normally shift. When I shift at a leisurely pace with my foot off the throttle, the revs are too low to match the ground speed to just let the clutch out in second.

Because of this, I have to adapt my shifting style a bit. A little blip to the throttle between 1st and 2nd matches the revs up nicely.

Another thing I notice, is the engine revs quickly for having as much torque as it does. Because of the healthy torque, a shift made when the engine speed doesn't match is more noticeable.

Also, is it me, or does the electronic throttle control sometime not pick up very light taps to the gas pedal during shifts? It almost seems like the computer ignores them as user error. (it could just be me, also.)

 

Haha... I have no problems with that...
Gotta love my 5AT!

 

BRAD, interesting I was just thinking about this and playing around today. I had the similar sort up jerking/abruptness when shifting, I think a lot of it has to do with my driving style (under NON race conditions). I bought a used car about 10 years back and had to replace the clutch, which cost a lot of $$, so ever since then I give the car NO gas when shifting from 1st to 2nd (so the clutch doesn't SLIP at ALL), SOME cars respond differently, but the Z responds the WORST.

the best results I got today was giving the car gas as I let out the clutch (about 1/3 of the way down to the floor), this is something I typically do when I drive more aggressively, but I just take it a little easier.

I get NO jerkiness, maybe it isn't as good on the clutch, but then again, maybe it is because the RPMs maybe matched better???


ANYONE esle??

 

Great thread!!!! I ordered my car last week with the 6MT. THis is my first car with a stick, and to be honest I don't really drive one that great. I do ok with everything but getting out of first gear. SO any tips would be great!

 

start in 2nd?
Perhaps let the clutch out a bit slower when going into 2nd. Make sure the clutch is fully out before giving it more juice.

 

Yeah...im pretty adept at the stick. I can do alot of the fun tricks such as heel/toe with ease, but I couldn't seem to master that 1-2 transition. I was driving around today (for joy of course) and was practicing that as your passengers arnt looking for fast lap times but simply not have to be shifted around by the idiot driver I just couldnt seem to get it down perfect.

For me...it was comming out of first (not transisioning into second) that was the problem. Comming off the throttle was quite an abrupt change...was i doing it too quick...or was I making it too slow, thereby loosing momentum making it feel like two seperate acceleration events. Perhaps I'm comming off the throttle too early? Any tips in general.

 

I've been having the same problems, but today on my way to work I figured something out, if u shift faster than you usually do, meaning shift the stick faster, it feels muCH smoother.. Try it guys and tell me if it works for ya..

Usually when Im just driving around not paying attention, I think I put the clutch in and shift from 1-2 pretty slowly, but it seems when I shift faster it elimates the jerkiness..

 

It's an acquired skill... the 1-2 shift that is. After 6000 miles, I've pretty muched mastered the timing to get a smooth 1-2 shift.

 

I get it pretty smooth now, getting better and better. no tips tho, my idea of smooth still isnt automatic smooth.

now another question, when you first start going in the morning, I go into first, drive a little bit, then put the clutch in and shift out, the stick like pops out of gear HARD, and when I put the clutch in for that shift the car kinda lurches... it NEVER does it again. only on the first shift, as tho it was cold or something, is this normal?

I wish I could explain it better, but Im drawing a blank on a good explanation.

 

for me when i am driving regularly, i just let out the clutch real slow and rev to about 2k. shifting to 2nd, i throw in the gear and let out the clutch slowly without any gas. only driven for about 20 miles and have it down pretty well already. i just need to learn how to drive aggresively without jerky motion.....

 

Well what I do is make sure that I don't let off the gas before a push in the clutch. That way I don't accidentally get any engine braking (as this would amplify the jerking motion) before I get the clutch in. I know I've done it right if a see the rmps jump up a bit between shifts. Then I shift very quickly into 2nd, even when I'm just putting around, for practice. I think the faster the shift, the sooner I can get back on the gas, so the shorter amount of time the the car is out of gear, the smoother the shift. The 1st to 2nd gear is pretty notchy and it does seem as though I might be putting a strain on the shift fork jamming it into gear like that.

 

I'm having real difficulty getting heel&toe down when downshifting into a corner. Part of the problem seems to involve getting used to the rate of rpm slowing after I briefly punch the gas pedal. Other cars without crank fired ignition and complicated electronics seem to produce quicker rpm slowing after 'blipping' the pedal.

I'm trying to match the revs as I down shift into second but the revs are often too high and the car jerks ahead for a moment. This unsettles the turn and delays full acceleration.

Practicing these things at least is fun.

 

Hehe, I'm glad I'm not the only one having difficulty making smooth shifts. This is my third vehicle, and they've all had sticks. Plus I've driven two other vehicles so I've got quite a bit of experience with various sticks. Here's my list so far:
84 Nissan Hardbody
95 Ford Ranger
92 Toyota Paseo
79 Volvo Wagon
03 350Z

I learned to drive on the Volvo, and it was great. The clutch was very progressive, making it very difficult to stall (maybe cuz it was worn as well). Shifter was pretty rubbery though.

The Nissan truck was pretty nice, as was the Ranger and the Paseo. The Ranger had the longest travel and longest shifts, and both the Nissan and Toyota were pretty sporty.

The Z has a long clutch travel, with pretty heavy activation, very similar to the Ranger. However, my clutch engages almost instantaneously, so I've taken to "pausing" in the middle of the clutch travel for smooth shifts. I've also noticed that the Z's engine stays revved pretty high when in the middle rev range (maybe between 2500 and 4000), which could be due to my clutch/throttle timing. When I shift in that range I have to shift very slowly or the rev's will be too high when I hit the next gear and will therefore cause a little "jump". Anything above 4000 seems to work pretty well. I have a bit of notchiness going into second as well, but that only happens when cold and at low RPM's. Finally, the Z also has pretty crappy throttle response. There is a delay when blipping the throttle, which, when coupled with the instantaneous clutch engagement, makes it easy for me to stall. It also makes it tough for me to hell and toe, but the pedal position and lack of practice is most of the problem there.

So, to recap:
1. I usually take very long shifts when going from first to second in order to give the engine enough time to let the rev's drop.
2. I pause during the middle of releasing the clutch to try and smooth the transition.
3. When driving hard, I do neither of the above and things seem to work out pretty well. It's only during easy driving that I focus on smoothness.

-D'oh!

 

I forgot to mention that as well, shifting faster seems to decrease the "jerkyness" and keeps the momentum up.

 

Yep,

It seems this car was designed to be shifted fast. It is actually MORE DIFFICULT to shift this car from 1st to 2nd when doing less than 4k RPMs... than it is at anything above. Alot more difficult.

 

Yes.. it seems the faster your shift it.. the smoother it becomes.. and prevent the revs from dropping too fast.

 

joeshow, I practived your tip when driving home today and it seemed to help. What I was doing was trying too hard to slow things down in attempt to smooth it out...al I was doing was letting off the throttle too early, causing alot of engine braking, thereby making the shift longer and more noticeable.

If you push in the clutch sooner, right before you lift off the throttle (dont stab at the clutch which this method was getting me in the habbit of doing) and make the shift faster they were perfect. Remember, for thoose who play golf, faster doesnt meen the machnics should go to hell, though when I play thats usually what happens when I tee up the long shots

If done right, the revs will hang, if increase ever-so-slightly when you begin the shift. You will also feel it, as it will have the same efortless feel all the other gears have.

 

Brad4rdHay,
Sweet, glad I could help. I play golf ALOT too, and I know what you mean about the mechanics.